REVISION WORKSHEET-4

CLASS IX
UNSEEN PASSAGE

I. Read the passage given below:

Have you ever failed at something so miserably that the thought of attempting to do
it again was the last thing you wanted to do?

If your answer is yes, then you are “not a robot.” Unlike robots, we human beings
have feelings, emotions, and dreams. We are all meant to grow and stretch despite
our circumstances and our limitations. Flourishing and trying to make our dreams
come true is great when life is going our way. But what happens when it’s not? What
happens when you fail despite all of your hard work? Do you stay down and accept
the defeat or do you get up again and again until you are satisfied? If you have a
tendency to preserve and keep going then you have what experts call, grit.

Falling down or failing is one of the most agonizing, embarrassing and scariest
human experiences. But it is also one of the most educational, empowering and
essential parts of living a successful and fulfilling life. Did you know that
perseverance (grit) is one of the seven qualities that have been described as the keys
to personal success and betterment in society? The other six are: curiosity, gratitude,
optimism, self-control, social intelligence, and zest. Thomas Edison is a model for
grit for trying 1,000 plus times to invent the light bulb. If you are reading this with
the lights on in your room, you know well he succeeded. When asked why he kept
going despite his hundreds of failures, he merely stated that they were not failures.
They were hundreds of ways not to create a light bulb. This statement not only
revealed his grit but also his optimism for looking at the bright side.

Grit can be learnt to help you become more successful. One of the techniques that
help is mindfulness. Mindfulness is a practice that helps the individual stay in the
moment by bringing awareness of his or her experience without judgement. This
practice has been used to quiet the noise of their fears and doubts. Through the
simple practice of mindfulness, individuals have the ability to stop the self-
sabotaging downward spiral of hopelessness, despair and frustration.

What did you do to overcome the negative and self-sabotaging feelings of failure?
Reflect on what you did, and try to use those same powerful resources to help you
today.

On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer the questions that
follow:

(A) The reason why you are not a robot is that:

(a) You fail miserably at tasks
(b) Failure and success can affect your emotions
(c) You work hard
(d) You have limitations
(B) What is the tone of the following context: “Falling down or failing is one of
the most… educational, empowering, and essential parts of living a successful
and fulfilling life.”?
(a) Humorous
(b) Optimistic
(c) Horrifying
(d) Solemn

(C) Which of the following is relevant for the title of the passage.
(a) Dreams Always Come True
(b) Failure and Grit Go Hand in Hand
(c) Humans vs Robots
(d) Falling Down and Getting Up

(D) ……………… was created after many attempts.

(a) electricity
(b) light bulb
(c) current
(d) tube light

(E) Which of the following sentences makes the correct use of “grit”, as used
in the passage?
(a) Get rid of that grit in your shoes.
(b) She had a bit of grit in her eye.
(c) The road had been covered with grit.
(d) Her grit never made her give up.

(F) To develop perseverance, one must:

(a) become more aware
(b) work hard
(c) be in the moment and be aware without judgement
(d) seek guidance

(G) How does mindfulness help?

(a) It creates awareness
(b) It quietens the noise of fears and doubts
(c) It helps one become successful
(d) It helps develop focus

(H) What do you understand from this line, “Falling down or failing is one of
the most agonising, embarrassing, and scary human experiences.”?
(a) Falling down makes us angry.
(b) Failure can deeply affect our emotions
(c) Stay positive and be optimistic
(d) Self-control is empowering

(I) Choose the option that correctly states the meaning of ‘social intelligence’
as implied in the passage:
(a) Knowing others
(b) Knowing oneself and others
(c) Knowing oneself
(d) Knowing one’s surroundings

(J) The importance of perseverance and optimism for a successful and

fulfilling life is explained using the example of?
(a) Thomas Edison
(b) Flourishing
(c) Grit
(d) Limitations

II. Read the passage given below.

The choices we make on a daily basis—wearing a seatbelt, lifting heavy objects

correctly or purposely staying out of any dangerous situation—can either ensure our
safety or bring about potentially harmful circumstances.
You and I need to make a decision that we are going to get our lives in order.
Exercising self-control, self-discipline and establishing boundaries and borders in
our lives are some of the most important things we can do. A life without discipline
is one that’s filled with carelessness.
We can think it’s kind of exciting to live life on the edge. We like the image of
“Yeah! That’s me! Living on the edge! Woo-hoo!” It’s become a popular way to
look at life. But if you see, even highways have lines, which provide margins for our
safety while we’re driving. If we go over one side, we’ll go into the ditch. If we cross
over the line in the middle, we could get killed. And we like those lines because they
help to keep us safe. Sometimes we don’t even realize how lines help to keep us
safe.
I’m not proud of this, but for the first 20 years of my life at work, I ignored my
limits. I felt horrible, physically, most of the time. I used to tell myself “I know I
have limits and that I’ve reached them, but I’m going to ignore them and see if or
how long I can get by with it.” I ran to doctors, trying to make myself feel better
through pills, vitamins, natural stuff and anything I could get my hands on. Some of
the doctors would tell me, “It’s just stress.” That just made me mad. I thought stress
meant you don’t like what you do or can’t handle life, and I love what I do. But I
kept pushing myself, traveling, doing speaking engagements and so on—simply
exhausting myself.
Finally, I understood I was living an unsustainable life and needed to make some
changes in my outlook and lifestyle.
You and I don’t have to be like everyone else or keep up with anyone else. Each of
us needs to be exactly the way we are, and we don’t have to apologize for it. We’re
not all alike and we need to find a comfort zone in which we can enjoy our lives
instead of making ourselves sick with an overload of stress and pressure.

On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer the questions that
follow:
(A) Which of the characteristics are apt about the writer in the following
context: “I know I have limits and that I’ve reached them, but I’m going to
ignore them and see if or how long I can get by with it.”?
1. negligent
2. indecisive
3. spontaneous
4. reckless
5. purposeless
6. patient
(a) 2 and 5
(b) 3 and 6
(c) 1 and 4
(d) 2 and 3

(B) The reason why living on the edge has become popular, is because of the
(a) constant need for something different.
(b) population being much younger.
(c) exhausting effort to make changes.
(d) strong tendency to stay within our limits.

(C) The phrase “potentially harmful circumstances” refers to circumstances

that can
(a) certainly, be dangerous.
(b) be fairly dangerous.
(c) be possibly dangerous.
(d) seldom be dangerous.

(D). Choose the option that correctly states the two meanings of ‘outlook’, as
used in the passage.
1. A person’s evaluation of life
2. A person’s experiences in life
3. A person’s point of view towards life
4. A person’s regrets in life
5. A person’s general attitude to life
(a) (1) and (4)
(b) (2) and (3)
(c) (3) and (5)
(d) (4) and (5)

(E) Choose the option that best captures the central idea of the passage from
the given quotes.
1. It’s all about quality of life and finding a happy balance between work and
friends.
2. To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short.
3. Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.
4. Balance is not something you find, it’s something you create.
(a) Option (1)
(b) Option (2)
(c) Option (3)
(d) Option (4)
(F) The author explains the importance of discipline and boundaries in our
lives using the example of
(a) road accidents.
(b) traffic rules.
(c) lines on the highway.
(d) safe driving.

(G) The author attempts to __________________ the readers through this

write-up.
(a) rebuke
(b) question
(c) offer aid to
(d) offer advice to

(H) What is the message conveyed in the last paragraph of the passage?
(a) Love what you do.
(b) Love yourself to love others.
(c) Be the best version of yourself.
(d) Be yourself

(I) Which of the following will be the most appropriate title for the passage?
(a) Much too soon
(b) Enough is enough
(c) How much is too much?
(d) Have enough to do?

(J) The author uses colloquial words such as “yeah” and “Woo-hoo!”. Which
of the following is NOT a colloquial word?
(a) hooked
(b) guy
(c) stuff
(d) stress

III. Read the passage given below.

Tourists to Jammu and Kashmir have another attraction–a floating post office on the
Dal Lake in Srinagar, the first in the country. ‘Floating Post Office, Dal Lake’–
claimed to be the only one such post office in the world–is built on an intricately
carved maroon houseboat, fastened on the western edge of the Dal Lake.

This post office lets you avail of all the regular postal services available in the
country while being afloat. The seal used on everything posted from Floating Post
Office is unique–along with the date and address, it bears the design of a boatman
rowing a shikara on the Dal Lake. The special. feature of this post office is that letters
posted from here carry a special design which has the picturesque scenery of Dal
Lake and Srinagar city. These pictures reach wherever these letters are posted to and
hence promote Kashmir as a tourist destination across the world.
This is actually a heritage post office that has existed since British times. It was
called Nehru Park Post Office before 2011. But then the chief postmaster John
Samuel renamed it as ‘Floating Post Office’.

The post office’s houseboat has two small rooms–one serves as the office and the
other a small ‘museum that traces the philatelic history of the state postal department.
It has a shop that sells postage stamps and other products.

But for the locals, Floating Post office is more than an object of fascination. 1–2
crore is deposited per month in Floating Post Office by communities living in and
around the Dal Lake. The lake has several islets that are home to more than 50,000
people. The greatest fear is the recurrence of 2014 like floods in which the houseboat
had gone for a toss uncontrollably pushed by the flood. Rescue teams had to anchor
it using special mechanism in a nearby highland. Then it was brought back on the
Dal after the water receded. The biggest boon is that at no time of the year do you
need a fan in this post–office!

On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer the questions that
follow:

(A) Jammu and Kashmir has another attraction, the first in the country
………………….
(a) A floating ATM
(b) A floating bank
(c) A floating post office
(d) A floating museum

(B) The greatest fear that the post office has is that ………………………. .
(a) it can get drowned
(b) it can be looted
(c) it has less deposits
(d) the floods can ruin it

(C) The post office’s houseboat has ……………………….. small rooms.

(a) two
(b) three
(c) five
(d) six

(D) The heritage post office has existed since the ……………………….. times.
(a) Indian
(b) American
(c) Japanese
(d) British

(E) Find the word from the passage which means the same as “attraction”.
(Para 5)
(a) Fascination
(b) Receded
(c) Recurrence
(d) Rescue